Facing Fear

Just the thought of flying with a baby strikes fear in the hearts of parents.

But when my husband asked if baby Arlene and I wanted to meet up with him during a Boston work trip, I said sure. I can do this! I reasoned that I would’ve gone prior to having a baby, so why let that stop me now?

However, as the trip approached, the panic set in. Here’s every fear that raced through my head prior, followed by how it played out in real life.

* * *

Fear: Getting all the crap from the car into the airport.

I hate lugging my own suitcase. How in the hell am I supposed to carry a suitcase, stroller, carseat, diaper bag and live, tiny human through the airport?

“It’s not that bad.”

… said every person about having a C-section.

My OB said it’s a quick surgery and I’d be walking the following day. Our birthing class grazed over C-sections; most of my favorite pregnancy websites hardly talk about them at length. So it must not be that bad, right?

Sorta…

My baby was breech and at 37 weeks, my doctor and I decided to schedule a C-section. In the two weeks leading up to my surgery, I barely found any helpful info online. Frustrating, considering something like 30 percent of American mothers give birth via C-section

So here’s a exhaustive list of everything I wish I’d known before having a C-section.

The bad news? It’s unpleasant. The good news? A month into your recovery, you’ll feel pretty good, thinking to yourself, “Hey, that wasn’t that bad!” Ha. Hahahah. Really, you will think this.

In the days before…

In ninth grade, a male friend of mine tackled me on a bed during a party and “pretended” to hump me. I laughed it off because I was embarrassed.

While interning with the Minnesota Twins, a pitcher from another team held two fingers to his mouth, wagging his tongue between them while two teammates spewed disgusting language at me in Spanish. I understood every word. At the time, I was escorting two 6-year-old children to the field. No bigs!

In college, a “friend” of mine figured out where I was going every weekend night, then creepily followed me home every evening. Once I got home, he’d call me four or five times throughout the night. It happened for a full semester, even after I asked him to stop.

When I was 23, a very large man approached me at a bar two blocks from my house. He asked if … Read more

Jasmin Charlotte is a blogger who focuses on technology, adventure and travel. That last part is rather notable, given that she has a serious flying phobia. However, she wasn’t about to let a little hysterical crying, sweaty palms and pre-trip nausea keep her from seeing the world. She decided to actively work on overcoming her fear, and for the most part she’s succeeded.

Here’s how Jasmin quit her fear of flying.

* * *

Do you remember when your fear of flying began?

I definitely didn’t have it when I was younger, I slept blissfully! I think it started when I was a teenager and I had quite a big gap in between when I had been on planes. This led to me building it up in my mind and eventually the fear starting. My mum has always had a really bad fear of flying which I think contributed … Read more

I’ve made a lot of big changes in the last three years.

I feel like I’m finally honing in on happiness.

But you know what? While my happiness is related to my Big Life Changes, it’s not just the house or the marriage or the job or the baby that are making me happy. It’s more that these things granted me an “excuse” to make changes I’ve thought about for years.

Let’s look at quitting my job.

When I left my full-time gig a year and a half ago, my reasoning was pretty straightforward. I wanted to build a freelance writing career, and planned on having a family in the near future. Hence, I craved … Read more